Music has always been one of the most profound ways to create a bond between the artist and the audience. From classical instruments to popular songs, they all have the same purpose: to make a connection.
Andrés Jaramillo, assistant professor of music, presented his new album to California Baptist University students and staff through a piano recital. For his second album, “A Journey of Immigrants”, Jaramillo’s performance united classical piano and Latin American music. Playing songs from Jorge Pinzón to Paola Marquez, Jaramillo traveled through Latin American culture, sharing what it offers best: emotion and love.
For Jaramillo, the impact of music on his life opened his heart to the importance of music in his life and family and how it helped him fulfill God’s purpose.
“Every day keeps impacting me; every day is a new discovery of music. I believe that God is the first musician. In many ways, I get impacted by who He is through music more than music itself. Music is beautiful, but music is a reflection of life, not life itself. Life is one person, not something. And that person is Jesus,” Jaramillo said. “All humanity is deaf to hear God’s music. Sometimes, we fall in love with music without knowing the author. We need to have this metaphor implanted in our ears to listen to music that really matters, which is the one that communicates God’s love.”
Jaramillo’s most important goal was to communicate God’s love and safety to the people listening to his music. He also highlighted the importance of immigrants.
“This album has the intention to bring comfort to people, especially immigrants. It has the intention to bring hope, to make the invisible visible. Because sometimes, the invisible are the immigrants—there are times we feel invisible in society,” Jaramillo said. “This album and those pieces have the purpose of making people feel visible through the beauty of who they are. Also, God is an expert in transforming invisible people into visible people. God Himself is invisible and became visible as an immigrant through Jesus. In the end, that is how I want them to feel—that they are visible to God, to art, that they are beautiful as immigrants, and that they can have hope.”
Jaramillo’s goal was successfully achieved at the recital, as some students shared their feelings about the event. When asked what was the most enchanting part of the recital, Rafaela Gois, junior political science major, shared her thoughts.
“What enchanted me the most is that Professor Jaramillo carries Latin roots because I also carry them,” Gois said. “But also, he made everybody feel like they belong, even those who were not from Latin America. There were people from different cultural backgrounds. He made all of us understand what message he wanted to give.”
Attending a piano recital for the first time, Damini Ghanshyani, junior graphic design major, was mesmerized and shared her thoughts on how well Jaramillo interpreted emotions in his performance.
“I felt all kinds of emotions. I think that it brought happiness in some songs but also tension in others,” Ghanshyani said. “The idea he had to represent each song as one stage of an immigrant’s life, showing us how most immigrants might feel throughout life, was amazing.”
Regarding music, each artist has a different perspective on how art can change lives and purpose. Music is an opportunity for the audience to open their ears to God’s love. For Professor Andrés Jaramillo, that is why music is one of the most impactful art mediums.
